Yellow
by YourGirlThursday
Summary: It wouldn't be a game night without snacks. Picking the right ones, however, was a delicate art. Cameron would be the first to admit that he went slightly overboard though. To be fair, it was kind of Camille's fault.


**Around a month or so ago lovelyair on Tumblr reblogged a post and asked if someone would write a Camsten fic around it. I've been working on it on and off since then. The post (originally written by whoarei) was "she guessed my favorite color first try..but between me and u…. i didnt even have a favorite color until she yelled out yellow! she was hella excited n smiling like a little kid. so i told her she was right and i havent seen yellow the same since, its in everything. i could probably live in it now. " This completely ignores the events of the finale.**

* * *

It wouldn't be a game night without snacks. Picking the right ones, however, was a delicate art.

Cameron would be the first to admit that he went slightly overboard though. To be fair it was kind of Camille's fault. She had originally suggested that everyone make and bring something. As soon as she mentioned her world famous cheese dip, Cameron knew they were in trouble. The primary ingredient was that awful cheese that the grocery stores didn't even keep with the other dairy products. There were certain things Cameron wouldn't tolerate, and fake cheese was one of them..

Camille waffled a little until Cameron begged her to let him make all the food. It took him about twenty seconds to realize that he had been played. That just spurred him on to create a menu that was extremely simple, but executed perfectly.

His next step was creating guidelines. He couldn't pick anything that made a mess of everyone's hands like that white cheddar popcorn Linus and Tim were obsessed with. There were little cheddar smudges of their fingerprints everywhere in the lab. It would be ridiculous to give everyone silverware so finger foods were a must. Tonight they were going to attempt to play an entire game of Risk. That could go on for hours so foods that could sit out for a little while were better.

The first round could be hot so Cameron decided on spinach puffs and mini quiches to eat first. Once those were gone, he would get out the fresh mango salsa with chips. There was also a relish tray with homemade ranch dressing. Camille claimed it wasn't a real party unless she could eat vegetables that were drowning in ranch.

The spread also included mini sandwiches. They were all PB&J with the crusts left on. The peanut butter was extra crunchy, while the 'j' was strawberry jam instead of grape jelly. Both were cozied up on slices of fresh, fluffy bread that had come from a bakery that morning. Cameron had originally wanted to make the peanut butter, banana, and honey with a dash of cinnamon sandwiches he loved. The bananas wouldn't hold up well so fancy PB&J it was.

If somehow that wasn't enough food, Cameron had also baked. He made mini cookies that were studded with cranberries and white chocolate chips. His double fudge walnut brownies were arranged on a serving plate in perfect inch by inch squares. The item he was most proud of was his apple pie though. He had baked individual pies in his cupcake pan. The crust was homemade and worked into perfect lattices across the tops of the pies. He had even replaced the water in the crust with apple brandy for extra flair.

Linus had arrived early, citing his responsibility as 'quality control' for the reason. He snuck bites of everything, particularly the cookies. Cameron tried and failed to be supremely annoyed. His ego ate up every compliment.

It wasn't long before Camille and Kirsten showed up. Camille helped Linus set up the Risk board he had brought and the food Cameron had arranged on trays. Kirsten pulled bottle after bottle out of a seemingly endless grocery bag. She continued until she had lined up lemon juice, vodka, raspberry vodka, club soda, and a travel coffee mug neatly on the counter.

"I thought you were bringing wine," Cameron asked, gesturing at the row of bottles that clearly weren't wine.

Kirsten shrugged and started looking through the cabinets for glasses. "We were, but I wanted to actually make something. Cocktails seemed like a good idea. All I had to do was make simple syrup, which is as easy as it sounds."

"You did what?" It was hard to keep the surprise out of his voice.

Kirsten snorted. "I used a stove, not a nuclear reactor. Making syrup is visual rather than time-based, which helped. All I had to do was keep stirring until the sugar dissolved."

Cameron picked up the coffee mug and peered into it. The clear liquid looked perfect. "What are you making with it?"

Kirsten pulled four glasses out of the cabinet, two at a time. "Lemon vodka fizz. I found a recipe that used rosemary in the syrup recipe, but Camille convinced me to do it this way first. It was her idea to try the raspberry vodka in it. We'll experiment with that later."

Cameron smiled to himself. His heart tugged a little as he watched Kirsten. She didn't make an effort unless something was important to her. Her movements were so careful as she added ice to each glass. She measured then double-checked her recipe before pouring each ingredient into the glass.

Once she was done with the first glass, she slid a straw into it. Kirsten stirred the contents slowly so the carbonation didn't fizzle out. She took a delicate sip of the concoction. If her smile was any indication, the drink was good. She took several more sips before handing the glass off to Cameron so she could make more drinks.

Cameron tried the lemon vodka fizz. It bubbled across his tongue, tart and sweet. He continued to drink as he watched Kirsten finish making a cocktail for everyone. Her movements were more confident with each glass.

"Need a refill?"

Cameron looked down. He had nearly finished his drink. Kirsten looked smug as she made him another. It was hard to tell if it was the vodka or her smile that warmed him. Once she was done, they each took two glasses and headed for the dining room.

"I sure hope one of those is for me," Camille said from her spot at the kitchen table. She reached out her hand for her glass. "We finished setting up. All that's left is picking what color everyone is. Linus wants blue. I'm red."

Kirsten surveyed their choices with a smile. "We'll just do everyone's favorite color then."

Cameron's hand twitched. He didn't have the heart to tell Kirsten he didn't have a favorite color. It was one of those things people never really understood. He had preferences for certain colors in his wardrobe based on what (he had been told) looked good on him. He bought things that matched the way his apartment was painted when he moved in.

Luckily, Cameron didn't have to say anything. With zero hesitation, Kirsten reached across the table to grab two of the bags with game pieces in them. She handed the yellow one to Cameron.

"Here."

Linus raised an eyebrow. "Since when is yellow your favorite color?"

Cameron almost spilled that it wasn't, but something in Kirsten's face made him take a different tack. "Since always." He upended his bag and started to count out the number he needed for the game. " Alright, I need a go/no go for Risk gameplay. Camille?"

Linus groaned at the joke. Camille threw a carrot stick that Cameron almost caught before it hit the floor. Kirsten was the only one who looked amused. The corner of her mouth pulled up in a slight smile.

They rolled a die to see who would go first. Linus won so he got to place the first piece. Picking territories went fairly quickly. Kirsten in particular made all of her choices swifty. That wasn't too surprising given her background in chess. The game moved at a nice pace after that. It was hard to tell who was winning at any given moment, but the ladies never looked worried. Kirsten made a couple of terrible decisions, but her confidence never wavered. In the end, it was Camille who won, with Linus as a close second. She flung her arms around Linus and kissed him soundly on the cheek.

"She's so happy," Kirsten whispered as Camille continued to celebrate.

Cameron watched her methodically collect the dishes on the game table. There was something about her smile that reminded him of Mona Lisa. She was keeping something from him. He stacked several plates and followed her.

"Did you let her win?" Cameron asked in a low voice. He laid the dishes down next to the others.

Kirsten didn't answer. She continued to move around the kitchen, putting things away as she went. Enough time had passed that Cameron thought she wasn't going to answer him. He turned back to the sink so he could rinse the dishes and load the dishwasher. The stack was halfway gone when Kirsten appeared at his shoulder. She hopped up on the counter. Cameron stopped what he was doing to give Kirsten his full attention.

"Ed let me join a chess club at the rec center when I was nine. He thought it would be a great way for me to make friends. After my fourth time there, none of the other kids wanted to be paired up with me. I went back two more times before some of the parents talked with Ed. They told him that they thought I needed more of a challenge and that I should join the adult club."

The towel in Cameron's hands was so twisted up that his knuckles were turning white. He couldn't imagine how awful that must have been for Kirsten. "And then they welcomed you with open arms?"

Kirsten shook her head. "Not exactly. I went once and won every match I played. The next week I wasn't allowed back in because it was 'for adults only'." Kirsten's hands made little quotation marks in the air. "Ed was really upset. He bought me a chess computer game that week so I could play whenever I wanted. No matter how many times you beat a computer it still asks you if you want to play again."

The matter of fact way she told the story pained Cameron. "I'm so sorry."

"It didn't really hurt at the time. But I think it would now." Kirsten took a short breath. "Camille and I used to be rivals. I like where we are. It would be awful to lose her, any of you."

Though her expression and voice were steady, it was obvious to Cameron that Kirsten was genuinely worried. The way her arms crossed around her stomach, clutching her sides tightly. It was almost hard to watch. Kirsten wasn't used to her emotions, which made the painful ones harder for her to process. It amazed Cameron how well she handled her emotions given how new they were to her. Kirsten's strength never failed to impress him. Being vulnerable wasn't easy for anyone, and Kirsten didn't have much practice in that.

Cameron moved so he was standing directly in front of her. He wanted to touch her as a way to comfort her. The problem was that he didn't know where it would be appropriate or whether the gesture would be received well. He shoved his hands in his back pockets to keep them from wandering.

"I don't think that'll happen. We're all adults." He chuckled at Kirsten's raised eyebrow. "Well, we mostly behave like adults. And if it becomes boring because you always win, we'll just pick a different game."

The corners of Kirsten's mouth lifted into a small smile. Her eyes peered down at his before sinking lower. The breath caught in Cameron's throat. The idea that she was looking at his mouth, contemplating kissing him, was mind boggling. It happened so quickly that Cameron decided he had been imagining things. He leaned back, putting another inch between them.

"So how did you know yellow was my favorite color?" It was a desperate change of conversation, but it was something he had been thinking about all night.

"It's not like it's a secret. You have a lot of yellow things." Kirsten tilted her head to the side, gesturing toward the sink.

Cameron frowned and looked where she wanted. Both his sponge and dish soap were yellow. To be fair, the soap was yellow because it was lemony, which helped neutralize the smell of garlic. The sponge he had no excuse for. Had he really done that on purpose or had he just bought the first sponge he saw?

"What about your baking cabinet? You should take a look at that too."

Cameron followed her instructions. He walked over to the cabinet nearest the refrigerator. Kirsten hopped off of the cabinet and followed him. Cameron pulled open the door and looked over the shelves.

"Wow."

He didn't know.

It was everywhere.

His stand mixer, the glorious one he bought with his first paycheck, was a creamy butter yellow. The mixing bowls were each a different color, but the biggest one was a canary yellow. The collapsible measuring cups and spoons were a neon yellow. It was the strangest thing realizing that he had subconsciously been buying so many yellow items for a number of years.

"See it wasn't too hard if you paid attention." Kirsten leaned against the counter. "Besides you're basically the physical embodiment of yellow. You're all cheerful and kind. A total Hufflepuff."

Cameron snorted. "I'm not a Hufflepuff."

"We can't all be in Gryffindor," Kirsten said with a shrug.

"You can't be serious." Cameron tried not to cringe at how shrill his voice went.

Kirsten arched an eyebrow. "When am I ever not serious?"

"I'm getting a second opinion."

Cameron went to the dining room with Kirsten right on his heels. He couldn't figure out why she thought he was a Hufflepuff of all things? Clearly, he was a Ravenclaw. MIT wanted him to work for them. His current job was one step away from running a top secret government lab. He stopped in front of Camille and Linus, who had just finished disassembling the game and picking up all of the pieces.

"Sort me."

Camille looked around Cameron to where Kirsten stood. "What's his deal?"

"Cameron wants to know which Hogwarts house you would sort him into."

"Hufflepuff," Camille and Linus answered in unison.

Cameron groaned. "Why do you all think that?"

"You just are the same way I'm a Ravenclaw, Camille's a Slytherin, and Kirsten's a Gryffindor." Linus shrugged. "It's who we are."

Camille nodded. "Totally agree with Linus."

"Told you," Kirsten chimed in from just over Cameron's shoulder.

Cameron buried his face in his hands. "I hate all of you."

Camille rose from the couch even though she was still holding Linus' hand. "Whatever Goodkin, you _love_ us." Linus stood up next to her, taking the game with him. As she passed him on the way to the door, Camille clapped Cameron on the shoulder with her free hand. It didn't sting much, but Cameron instinctively grabbed where she touched him.

"At least you won't have to listen to them the rest of the night," Kirsten reminded him in a low voice. "I bet Linus follows us home."

Cameron looked over at his friends. They worked so well together. It had only been about a month since they had made it official. Camille was obviously the one who had been more cautious. It was clear that Linus was all in from the start. Whatever hesitations Camille had experienced were gone. They were both so open about their adoration of the other. Even now, Linus was whispering in Camille's ear. Matching smiles spread across both of their faces.

"A coffee from Jeff's says they'll go to Linus' place."

Kirsten grabbed Cameron's hand quickly to shake it. "Deal." She looked over at her roommate. "I should probably get over there."

Kirsten joined Camille and Linus at the door. They all said their goodbyes and thanked Cameron for hosting. As soon as they left it felt like all of the warmth had leaked out of the apartment. Cameron turned on some music and finished cleaning up the kitchen. There were only a few dishes left. As he was finishing the last one his phone buzzed. It was a message from Kirsten.

 _ **According to the internet hufflepuffs value loyalty, hard work, fair play, kindness, tolerance, and dedication. Sound familiar?**_

Cameron smiled in spite of himself. He typed out a quick reply that he still wasn't convinced. The next message he got from Kirsten was a blurry, dark picture. He could barely make out that it was of Linus' car in her driveway. It was instantly followed up with her drink order. He congratulated her on winning their bet.

Cameron wanted to continue texting Kirsten, but he couldn't come up with anything to say. Asking her how she was doing felt lame. There weren't any lingering questions he had about work stuff. When he was getting ready for bed he got an idea. His toothbrush and tissue box were both yellow. He snapped a photo of them together and sent it to Kirsten. Cameron tried not to take it personally when she didn't reply.

In the morning Cameron nearly laughed out loud when he walked into Jeff's. The walls of the coffee shop were a golden color. He loved mornings when he could sit and enjoy his coffee here. Cameron had thought it was the atmosphere and smell of coffee in the air. Now he was thinking it might've been the walls painted in his favorite color. It was so strange how he never realized how much he loved the color until Kirsten said something. Now that he saw it, he couldn't unsee it.

Kind of like how once he realized he had feelings for Kirsten, he couldn't unfeel them.

Kirsten was already typing at her workstation when Cameron walked out of the elevator. He approached her, careful not to spill either of their coffee cups. Once he reached her desk he noticed something odd about it.

"How many cups of coffee do you think you need today, Stretch?" He set the one he had bought down next to the two others on the desk. "Win a lot of bets yesterday?"

Kirsten smiled, not taking her eyes off of the screen. "Let me finish this paragraph then I'll tell you."

Cameron pulled over his chair while he waited for Kirsten to finish. She saved the report she had been working on. Her hand wrapped around one of the cups. She picked it up to test its weight. It was empty so she chucked it into the garbage can under her desk. She picked up the other one and handed it to Cameron.

"This one's for you. Camille also bought me coffee this morning so I got one for you." Kirsten took the one Cameron had brought for her. She took a sip of it. "Thanks for this. Your coffee shop is much better than ours."

"How'd you get Camille to take you for coffee?"

Kirsten waved her hand. "I walked in on her and Linus last night."

Cameron nearly spilled both of his cups of coffee down his shirt. "I'm sorry, what?"

"It's so stupid. They were making out on the couch. I wanted some water so I left my room. I planned on ignoring them. Then Camille took off Linus' shirt and hit me with it." Kirsten took another sip of her coffee. "So I threw it back at them. I'm not sure who was more mortified: him or her. It didn't really bother me, but I got coffee out of the deal so that was nice."

Cameron grinned as he continued to drink his coffee. It was such a ridiculous story. Only his friends would do something like that. Kirsten played around with her computer, exiting all of her programs. Her desktop background caught Cameron's eye.

"It's your favorite color," he pointed out, immediately wincing at how he sounded.

"It's my favorite shade," Kirsten informed him. She pressed her lips together as though she wanted to say more then downed more of her coffee instead.

Cameron looked at the screen again. It wasn't a particularly pretty shade of green. The base was a light olive color with too much yellow mixed into it. There was something oddly familiar about it. Cameron turned back to Kirsten. Something had changed in the last few moments. Their conversation had been light and easy. Now it felt like they were on a tightrope. One wrong move meant that they'd crashland. Cameron's eyebrows creased in confusion.

"I have to go suit up," Kirsten murmured as she stood up, her chair knocking into his.

It was the strangest thing. As she rushed off, Cameron would swear he saw a blush creeping up the side of Kirsten's neck.

* * *

 **I do have an idea for a Kirsten companion piece if you all end up enjoying this one. If you read When It All Falls Apart, I'm working on the next chapter of that as well :)**


End file.
